Alleged car thief on the run after pursuit, crash in La Cañada

The search for a suspect who fled after crashing a stolen car into a fence during a pursuit in the Flintridge neighborhood Tuesday is ongoing, but Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department officials have learned the driver’s identity, a detective said Wednesday.

Marquise McGlothurn, an 18-year-old Pasadena resident, was driving a 2011 black BMW on Angeles Crest Highway near the 210 Freeway at around 3:30 p.m. when a deputy in the vicinity saw him make an illegal U-turn, according to Sgt. Hector Mancinas.

“[The deputy] put on his lights, but the car continued to drive,” Mancinas said, adding the BMW traveled south on Beulah Drive before going over a curb near the intersection of Beulah and Berkshire Avenue, where it crashed into a residential fence.

“It was a very short pursuit,” Mancinas said.

Immediately after impact, McGlothurn exited the vehicle and fled on foot. The other two passengers, both described as black males 19 years of age, were arrested on scene, officials reported.

A helicopter assisted in the search for McGlothurn, but was unsuccessful. The search was called off at about 6 p.m.

“Due to the geography we were unable to do a full search,” Lt. Chad Sauter, a watch commander for the Crescenta Valley Sheriff’s Station said Tuesday evening. “It’s pretty wooded.”

Sauter said deputies received “a couple calls” that residents had seen someone matching the suspect’s description in the area, but those reports did not pan out.

Neighborhood resident John Karayan said he arrived home around 4:30 p.m. and noticed a sheriff’s vehicle patrolling the neighborhood with its lights on, but siren off.

He said the helicopter began broadcasting a description of the suspect over its public address system, first in English and then in Spanish.

Authorities do not believe McGlothurn is violent.

“We have his name, we have his picture, we’re going to go find him,” Mancinas said Wednesday.

Brian Park and Ryan Fonseca contributed to this report.